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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. cap — a lid
  4. root — of a plant
  5. club — a group
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. cap — a hat
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. cap — of ice
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. club — for dancing
  13. root — of a word
  14. snap — to click
  15. file — a line of people
  16. branch — a division
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. root — the cause
  19. wound — an injury
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. wound — an injury
  22. file — a document
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. file — a tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com